Central Point man found guilty of detaining and beating woman

A Central Point man's history of abusing women could land him in prison for more than two years, a prosecutor said.

A Central Point man's history of abusing women could land him in prison for more than two years, a prosecutor said.

A jury on Wednesday found Brett Wayne Chancler, 45, guilty on felony charges of fourth-degree assault and coercion. In addition, he was found guilty on a harassment charge, which is a misdemeanor, said Jackson County Deputy District Attorney Laura Cromwell.

Chancler was arrested in July after locking his girlfriend in a room and beating her over the course of a weekend.

The jury listened to testimony from the victim during Wednesday's trial. The woman described how Chancler trapped her in a room inside his home on Table Rock Road and refused to let her leave.

"He actually laid down in front of the door to block her way," Cromwell said.

Chancler eventually fell asleep, enabling the woman to call 911. She made the call from behind a pillow because she was scared Chancler would hear her, Cromwell said.

Jackson County sheriff's deputies were able to trace the cell phone call after the woman hung up. They rushed to the house and forced their way inside. They arrested Chancler on a warrant for another crime.

The woman told the deputies she had been trapped in the room for two days and assaulted by Chancler.

Chancler denied anything had occurred at the home. Cromwell said his story did not hold up under a cursory glance.

"There were overturned tables and broken glass in the home," Cromwell said. "He tried to say there wasn't a struggle inside the home, which wasn't true."

The victim had just ended a violent relationship with another man before Chancler took her in. She was homeless at the time and needed a place to stay, Cromwell said.

"She was a very vulnerable victim," Cromwell said.

Cromwell looked into Chancler's past and found that he has a history of abusing women.

He has three previous domestic violence conviction involving different women. This allowed Cromwell to charge him with felony assault in the current case.

He has past convictions for resisting arrest and felony counts of not paying his child support, court records show.

He also has had numerous restraining orders placed against him from various women, according to court records.